Creative Entrepreneurship: The Journey to Launching and Growing a Business

Following the response to our IN BETWEEN event, we've created a smaller experience focused specifically on Creative Entrepreneurship: The Journey to Launching and Growing a Business. Our curated line up of speakers as well as our attendees will serve as an opportunity to further connect MENA creatives, founders, and investors. Our goal is to help build a bridge that empowers economic growth for our creative community.

While this event is centered around entrepreneurship, we invite all who are interested in learning and engaging to attend.

SCHEDULE

2:00pm: Doors Open

3:00pm: Launching & Growing a Business: Fundraising or Self Funding

This panel will include Bassel Naaman, Aminah Musa, Rama Chakaki, and Sujude Dalieh and will be moderated by Ibrahim Elshamy. In this discussion, we'll explore two options to grow a creative business: self funding like Aminah did or fundraising like Bassel did. Rama and Sujude will also share insights on angel investing, VC fundraising, and helpful details to help set your business up for success.

3:45pm: 15 minute break

4:00pm: Founder & Investor Fireside Chat

This fireside style conversation will be between Tarek Waked, Shak Siddiq, and Lena Khouri. In it, we'll dive deeper into their journeys of growing their businesses, the lessons and opportunities they discovered, and how we can further connect MENA investors with MENA entrepreneurs as a way to empower economic growth within our community.

4:30pm: Networking & Connections

After the fireside chat, we'll head to the patio for networking and drinks. We'll also have a few select startups showcasing their brands for attendees to engage with.

MEET THE SPEAKERS

Aminah Musa:

Aminah Musa, a falaha from Turmusaaya, Palestine, has used her storytelling and design talents to create PaliRoots, a brand she co-founded with her brother Hussein. With a deep-rooted passion for preserving the rich heritage of Palestine, Aminah’s upbringing in Southside Chicago instilled in her the drive and determination needed to run a successful business and engage in impactful social justice work. Her commitment to her ancestral homeland has led to PaliRoots becoming a beacon for Palestinian cultural education and unique products that foster meaningful conversations and ensure the preservation of Palestinian identity. Under her leadership, the PaliRoots team has contributed over 2.5 million meals to refugee children through their meal program, weaving a legacy of compassion and support for those most in need.

Rama Chakaki:

Rama is a Syrian American Impact Tech Entrepreneur, Investor and philanthropist. She is a partner in Transform VC, a Silicon Valley firm enabling 1000 tech founders to impact a billion and make a billion by investing in deep tech with climate and social impact. Rama was instrumental in building the social entrepreneurship ecosystem in the Middle East. In addition to her corporate roles, Rama runs an edTech nonprofit (VIP.fund) supporting youth impacted by conflict. Rama has been featured in Forbes, Bloomberg, the Monitor, Arab Women Rising, a Wharton School of Business Publication and The power of presence, a book by Joy Moore.

Bassel Naaman:

Bassel ‘BASE’ Naaman, from Beirut, Lebanon, is a DJ, producer and music industry entrepreneur based in Los Angeles. He established himself as one of the most prominent club and radio DJs in Beirut, before relocating to LA to further his career in music. Bassel quickly established himself as a distinguished figure in the LA HipHop scene and eventually became a founding member of Dash Radio. He is currently a Co-Founder and Head of Brand at The Realest, a startup focused on revolutionizing the authentication and sale of entertainment memorabilia. The Realest authenticates items that artists use at their shows or in their studio sessions and puts it up for auction, providing artists with an additional revenue stream from items they might have otherwise overlooked, and gives fans and collectors a chance to own a piece of history. Bassel’s multicultural background and global experiences shape his work. With a passion for driving innovation, Bassel aims to share insights into his music business career and the mission of The Realest, amplifying MENA art and culture on a global scale.

Sujude Dalieh:

Sujude Dalieh is an investor at JAZZ where she invests at the intersection of cultural trends and deep science. Prior to JAZZ, Sujude supported investments across frontier tech, workforce solutions, and health innovations at Lux Capital and K50 Ventures. Sujude started her career off in the computational sciences and is a Berkeley-trained scientist. She was a member of the Somorjai Group, a surface chemistry research lab at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and subsequently led the integration of the Jupyter Project at the Berkeley Institute of Data Science across over 50 clients. She pivoted to digital product strategy, where she built an array of community-forward health initiatives at Hopelab and YTH. Sujude holds an MEng in Product Design Engineering from Stanford University and a BS in Chemistry from UC Berkeley, and currently guest lectures at both. Sujude currently sits on the board of Mercaso and JobGet and is also active in the MENA-affiliated startup world as a board member of TechWadi.

Tarek Waked:

Tarek Waked is an investor and founding partner at Type One Ventures. Growing up in a Lebanese family in Latin America before moving to the United States, Tarek was always eager to learn and grow. As a founder, investor, and mentor to numerous startups through an incubator he established, Tarek believes that society should back ambitious founders, even if they've stumbled in the past, because you can't hit a home run without risking a strikeout. With a passion for investing in early-stage startups. It wasn't long before he spotted a massive opportunity in Space and DeepTech, which led him to create Type One Ventures. Tarek envisions a future where humanity achieves longevity escape velocity and explores the cosmos. Through his work, he hopes to make a lasting impact on humanity's journey through the stars.

Shak Siddiq pka Shak Thanks (recently added):
Shak Siddiq is an Afghan partner and managing director of Thanks For The Luck. With over a decade of entertainment industry experience including his time in the motion picture department at Creative Artists Agency, Shak brings expertise in creative production, business development and client management. Over the years, Shak has built a vast network by working with companies such as Nike, Red Bull, Interscope Records, Sony Music, A24 and many others where he built strategic partnerships in music, television, film, and advertising. He now helps run Thanks For The Luck, an LA-based artist development and entertainment company, with his partners Austin Glenn and Rasheed Tulay. Since 2018, Thanks For The Luck has placed itself at the forefront of entertainment and culture by working with acclaimed artists such as JAWNY, Kaleah Lee, Lecx Stacy, Eddie Mandell, Cisco Swank, Ark Patrol and more. With over four billion streams across its roster, Thanks For The Luck launched THANKS Recordings - a strategic partnership with The Orchard, a leading global music distribution company.

Lena Khouri (moderator):

Lena Khouri is a Palestinian/Jordanian entrepreneur and producer. She spent her career at some of the top companies across industries including entertainment at CAA and Wheelhouse, creative advertising at Deutsch, and her first company - a tech startup. Lena’s background and desire to amplify voices that reflect a more accurate representation of her culture inspired her to launch Between East. She is passionate about connecting the global MENA community and bringing inspiring stories to life while also helping create role models for future generations.

Ibrahim Elshamy (moderator):

Ibrahim Elshamy is a business lawyer for startups and venture capital investors based in the Los Angeles office of Gunderson Dettmer. He has been working for over a decade in the global innovation economy as a lawyer and advisor to the world’s best startups (including names such as Palantir, Robinhood, Flexport, Wish, and Instabug) and investors (including names such as Sequoia, A16Z, Accel, NEA, Dubai Future District Fund, 4DX, and Quona), with several in the MENA region. Ibrahim was formerly an executive at a technology startup valued at over $1 billion, is a graduate of Stanford Law School, and grew up as an entrepreneur running a used-car family business.

Thank you to our partner Gunderson Dettmer.

Gunderson Dettmer is the preeminent international law firm with an exclusive focus on the startup and venture capital ecosystem. The firm has closed the most VC deals in the world year-over-year for the past decade and represents over 4500+ venture-backed startups and entrepreneurs and 500+ venture capital and growth equity clients in their fund formation and investment matters.

Note: tickets are not refundable the day of the event.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Shay - Destination by Hyatt, 8801 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, United States